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Where creativity & imagination go hand-in-hand... |
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Monthly Newsletter August 2013
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Dear Knitters and Kumihimo Braiders,
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Hello, hello!
Again, it has been another great month. My mom and dad were in Truckee for 6 weeks and I thoroughly enjoyed having them around. My mom is a creative genius and I loved our afternoons together creating fun things She was a great addition at our Kumihimo nights, too!
This month I have some fun new things to introduce including some new Toho Seed Bead colors, a new "swirl" glue in end cap and the Teardrop Focal Beaded Necklace Kit of the Month. I have made two for myself (in purple and also aqua) and I love them.
Our featured "Artists" for this month are Quilters. We had a fabulous "Girl's Day" in early July and Donna and Tina shared their Quilt Art. I thought it would be fun to show you some other ways that people are creative. (P.S. Both gals braid beautifully)!
The Rayon Kumihimo Rayon Gimp has had a great reception. If you haven't tried it, there are a lot of great colors. The braids are BEAUTIFUL!
For the local braiders, we will be having Kumihimo Night on Tuesday, August 20th at 6:30 PM at my house. Bring whatever you are working on and come over for some catching up and fun. Our last Kumihimo Night was fantastic. There was a lot of creativity going around my living room and kitchen! Loved having a few out-of-towners too!
And once again, thank you all for your wonderful emails and all the orders you place. You keep me out of trouble because I have to work all the time!
Happy Braiding,
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Kumihimo Teardrop Focal Beaded Necklace Kit
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This necklace is dazzling! I had a lot of fun creating this necklace and experimented with many bead colors before coming up with a final collection! Beads are funny. They change color in different lights. They change color depending on what they are next to. They change color depending on the cord used for stinging. It's complicated. Out of all the color combinations that I played with I ended up choosing color palettes that are mostly monochromatic. I chose the C-Lon Tex 400 because it braids nicely with beads and is also great as a "stand alone" braid. I tried various C-Lon Tex 400 colors and selected either chocolate or black for all of the necklaces. The dark color C-Lon looks rich mixed with the beads. I also used a mixture of 6/0 and 8/0 seed beads. When used in combination, the varying sizes of beads add fun texture and interest. The necklace starts with a cord only braided section, then a focal section of 6/0, 8/0, and Teardrop beads followed with more braiding with cord only. The teardrop cluster consists of 24 teardrop beads and entire "focal" section is approximately 4". The length of the braided "ends", at the start and finish of the braid, will determine the overall length of the necklace. The necklace can be made as long as 24", I prefer about 16 - 17".
Kit includes:
1 Spool of C-Lon Tex 400
6/0 and 8/0 Seed Beads
24 Glass Teardrop Beads
5mm All-in-One Magnetic End Caps
Instructions with Photos 
You will Need:
Kumihimo Disk, 8 Bobbins, Measuring Tape, Heavy Duty Thread, Needle, Glue (like WeldBond), Fray Check (optional).
You Should Know: Kumihimo Round Braid, how to "drop"
Colors from Top to Bottom: Purple, Aqua, Blue Sky, Lava, Teal Peaches & Cream, Caramel Mix, Black.
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| Beads, Beads and more Beads! |
 New Toho Seed Beads: You can never have too many beads! Now available in 56 amazing colors. I have them spread out on a shelf in my workshop and they look so beautiful. I feel like a kid in a candy shop!
Colors from left to right: Frosted Gold-Lined Crystal, Rainbow Rosaline Purple, S/L Milky Grapefruit, Jonquil/Apricot, Rainbow Crystal Sandstone & Gold Lined Crystal.
10 - 11 grams / pkg
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| New ! Findings |
 New Ways to Finish..
All-in-One Swirl/Glue-in End cap
Two Sizes: 3.2 mm id & 6.2 mm id
Colors: Silver and Gold Plated
Cost: $2.00 / each
Buy some of each size so you can select the right size for your braids.
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| Quilting Artists of the Month | |
Tina Moser - Quincy, CA
Donna Meyers - Graeagle, CA 
Several of us gals that went to Guatemala a few years back decided that we needed to have a little reunion. Last month we managed to pull away from our busy lives and spend a day catching up. And what a day it was. It was lively. It was creative! We were talkative. We ate a lot . We laughed a lot. And we all brought our "projects". Two of us were braiders, one knitter and two were quilters. I would like to share a couple of beautiful quilted pieces and what the creators had to say!
Tina Moser: In the top picture, Tina is the gal sitting with the quilted piece hanging above her on
 | | Close-up of Tina's Wall Quilt |
the wall. Tina's "creative stitching" wall hanging is a masterpiece. Beautiful, beautiful! Here's what Tina had to say "First, my inspiration came from an Asian folk-art piece, designed by Sue Spargo, and also my love for the Asian countries, because my children taught in Japan and Korea. The technique was hand embroidery on wool using different textiles, like cotton and even velvet. I learned so much! I even had to Google some of her stitches, to get the hang of how they were done. I love to keep my hands busy. This is why I think I enjoy Kumihimo so much also. Since my daughter is 33, I guess you could say I've been quilting that long since I brought her home from the hospital in a baby blanket I had quilted for her".
 | | Donna's Traveler's Blanket (Holly left, Donna right) |
Donna Meyers: Donna is another very talented woman. I was sitting next to Donna when she started to unveil her quilting project "in progress". I almost fell over in my chair I got so excited. Donna's quilt is an explosion of whimsical embroidered designs on a shibori dyed piece of fabric. She was inspired by an Australian artist, Dijanne Cevaal. Here is what Donna shared with me, "I have been sewing all my life. I started with clothing then cross stitching. In 1995 I severed my ACL and knew I would be down for a while so I took up quilting. After having a quilt in every available space in my home I took up art quilting! Now I am filling up my walls! My latest work is a Traveler's Blanket. I saw an article by Dijanne Cevaal in Quilting Arts magazine. I emailed her and she started a Yahoo Group online. She gave us weekly lessons from the history of Traveler's Blankets to dying fabric to placing fabric and finally stitching them down. Every student (12 of us from all around the world) shared their project photos online. We were able to share our ideas and learn. I'm having lots of fun!" Thank you girlfriends for a fun day and for sharing your masterpieces.
 | | Close-up of Donna's Traveler's Blanket in progress. |
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| Kumihimo Tip #18 | |
My tips for stringing beads on C-Lon Tex 400: My "go-to" beads are 8/0 and 6/0 Toho or Miyuki seed beads or 4x7 Magatamas. When I am braiding with lots of beads, I use C-Lon Tex 400. I like C-Lon Tex 400 because it braids nicely with beads and is also a great "stand alone" braid. Sometimes I use finer diameter beading cords but the most versatile is the C-Lon Tex 400.
Most of the time, I take a sharp scissors and make a clean cut the end of my C-Lon Tex 400 and I use the thread as my needle to thread 8/0, 6/0 and Magatamas. If the end gets blunt, I snip it again. I have heard that some like to dip the end of the cord in a little Fray Check (or similar product) and this works too. Make sure you let it dry first!
Sometimes I use a wide eye needle.  It is a flexible needle and the "eye" runs the length of the needle. The wide eye needle works with C-Lon Tex 400 and 6/0 seed beads and the magatamas very nicely. Wide eye needles come in different lengths. I use a 5" wide eye needle. Thread the beads on the needle and then slide them onto the thread.
The C-lon Tex 400, coupled with a wide eye needle and the smaller 8/0 seed bead does not work so well. The needle and thread combined are too thick for the 8/0 seed bead. When this happens, I tie a leader to the needle with thread and attach it to the C-Lon Tex 400 and then the beads slide on pretty easily. 
If I am stringing a long strand of the same 6/0 seed beads on a cord, I use a Bead Spinner. You can get them at many craft stores. Mine is operated manually and has a medium size smooth wooden bowl. If you don't have a lot of beads to put in the spinner, a spinner with a small bowl will work better for you. Most Bead Spinners come with a needle made just for the Bead Spinner. It looks like a hook or small candy cane with a wide eye that runs the length of the needle.
Disclaimer: Not all beads are created equal. And even though I use great Japanese beads with consistent sized holes and smooth edges, every now and I'll get a bead or two or three that just won't budge. Just throw them away!
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| Kumihimo Show -n-Tell |
 | | by Sharon Praetzel |
I love seeing new stuff! Kumihimo night is always such a treat because everyone brings over whatever they have recently created.
The necklace to the left was braided my Sharon Praetzel. She used Dark Grey Petite Satin Cord, a 6mm All-in-One End cap and dressed up her braid with a gorgeous donut pendant that Paula brought her from our recent trip to Spain. She attached the cord to the donut with a Lark's Head Knot and braided each side separately. Nice work Sharon. She came in wearing this necklace and it looked stunning!
 | | by Irene York |
The necklace to the right was made by Irene York. She found the pendant at an arts and crafts fair and then selected a beads to match. She used Black C-Lon Tex 400, a 5mm All-in-One Magnetic end cap and 6/0 Toho Sea Foam Beads. The Black C-Lon that "peeks" out between the beads is actually a design element as its purpose is to enhance the black design in the swirl in her pendant. Most of the time we are so careful to select a thread or cord that "matches". While many times this is appropriate there are times when you can have fun mixing and matching and creating "out of the box". Stay tuned. More on this next month.
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| Plan AHEAD! | |
I have a hard time bringing myself to say this but NOW is the time to start planning your projects for holiday gift giving. Start planning and get an early start. I have lots of things and ideas that will make your gift making and giving a lot of fun.
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Shopping |
I have 5 "Kumihimo Shops" to meet all of your Kumihimo needs. All orders are through PayPal (or use the credit card option) and I ship orders via USPS First Class Mail. This has been amazingly reliable and incredibly fast. Most orders are shipped the same day I receive them.
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WHAT A KNIT ! Newsletter Archives
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